Archives

Money Manager Thinks “High-Decibel” Elizabeth Warren Doesn’t Know Her Place

Roger Lowenstein, the journalist-turned-chairman of the Sequoia mutual fund, criticizes Warren, “the nation’s unelected regulatory czar,” for being too outspoken about the financial industry. Lowenstein is the director of a mutual fund, which stands to lose significant market share if investors leave for index funds. So his hit job on Elizabeth Warren has the dual purpose of lobbying a regulatory agency to protect his business.

Trump Moves to Roll Back Obama-Era Financial Regulations

President Trump on Friday moved to chisel away at the Obama administration’s legacy on financial reform, announcing a series of steps to revisit the rules enacted after the 2008 financial crisis and setting the stage for a showdown with Democrats over the future of Wall  Street regulation. The rule’s supporters, including Democratic lawmakers and consumer groups, describe it as a basic consumer protection that can prevent brokers from taking advantage of vulnerable clients.

Rob Reich Explains the ‘Scam’ Behind the Trump Infrastructure Plan

Reich explains that rather than coming up with the necessary money to  fund these massive infrastructure plans by making the wealthy pay their  fair share, Trump’s plan offers tax breaks for the rich to encourage them to invest. “Which means that for every dollar they put into a project, they are actually paying only 18 cents – and we are paying the other 82 cents through our tax dollars.”

Instead of draining the swamp, Trump has become Wall Street’s best buddy

Trump would drain the swamp, he claimed, and reinstate a “21st-century” version of the law separating main street banking from Wall Street – Roosevelt’s Glass-Steagall Act – which was scrapped by President Bill Clinton, in one of his worst decisions. Trump would throw the money men out of the temple, he said. He would reshape finance for the “little guy”. His audiences roared him on.But, in office, Trump has proved to be a great deal friendlier to the titans of Wall Street and their interests than he suggested he would be as a candidate, although a close reading of his speeches foretells some of what is now happening. Far from draining the swamp, he is opening the sluicegates; the money men are not so much being hurled out as in full occupation of the economic citadel.

Donald Trump’s Executive Order Will Let Private Equity Funds Drain Your 401(k)

Donald Trump’s February 3executive order  enabling financial advisers to continue ripping off their clients could prove a lifeline for a surprising beneficiary: the private equity  industry. The Department of Labor’s fiduciary rule would have forced investment advisers in workplace retirement plans like 401(k)s to operate in their clients’ best interests, rather than recommending high-cost, high-risk products that offer the advisers kickbacks and perks.

Trump Reversals Hint at Wall Street Wing’s Sway in White House

President Trump made three startling economic policy reversals on Wednesday, stepping away from pledges he made as a candidate and even policies he supported only days ago. The shifts confounded many of Mr. Trump’s supporters and suggested that the moderate financiers he brought from Wall Street are eclipsing the White House populist wing led by Stephen K. Bannon, the political strategist who is increasingly being sidelined by the president.

The Obamas face the paid-speaking circuit — and all the questions that come with it

“President Obama will deliver speeches from time to time. Some of those speeches will be paid, some will be unpaid, and regardless of venue or sponsor, President Obama will be true to his values, his vision and his record,” his senior adviser, Eric Schultz, said in a statement issued after the Cantor Fitzgerald speech drew a wave of criticism — including a New York Post headline that dubbed Obama “Wall Street’s new fat cat.”